Wednesday, March 26, 2008

So, the stupidest protest just went on in NYC. Yes, the idiots who had the nerve to protest in the lobby of Bear Stearns over the Fed's "bail out" of the bank, while nothing was done for the "poor homeowners" who are facing foreclosure. Here's a link to a news story:

The fed is offering a heavily collateralized loan to help a major bank from going into bankruptcy. This is a bank that was taken down by rumors and a run. The Fed's guarantee is not helping the employees of Bear (trust me, I know, Dh works for Bear). All the guarantee did was make it more likely that JPMorgan Chase would take over and help the investors (many of whom are taxpayers, and fund holders) retain their money-making investments. Because when a bank goes down, all of the money held by the bank goes WITH IT. Bear had approximately $85 a share in assets before the liquidity problem (caused by rumors and media) happened. JPMorgan is going to go down in history as getting a steal of a deal, even at $10 a share. Watch.

Meanwhile, the Mortgage crisis is, I'm sorry, mostly the doing of the mortgage holders. Who takes on a mortgage they can't afford?? Ok, they could afford it in the beginning, but READ THE FINE PRINT. How hard is that, really?? We're talking mainly about people unable to pay for their mortgages who still have the same family incomes they had when they bought the homes. Yes,t here are pockets where people lost their jobs, but that is always going to happen. This crisis is people who didn't bother to actually READ their mortgage contracts, then went crying to the government when they started having problems paying their debts. I have very little sympathy for the people who took on more house than they could afford. I don't see why I, as a responsible taxpayer, should help out these people who weren't so responsible. Does that make me cold? Probably. But since when should our housing be socialist? Where is the line for fiscal responsibility?

I still love that it's the lender's faults that people can't pay anymore. I agree many people got preyed on, but it was their gullibility and greed that got preyed upon, really. Debt is not a good thing. Why take on more than you an handle??

Friday, March 7, 2008

It has been pointed out to me by someone whose opinion I care about that I am a bitter person....

In many ways, this person is absolutely correct. In others, not.

I am bitter about my family, and many things that happened when I was growing up. And how they treat me now.

I am bitter about how I was treated by some of my former friends...especially the ones who felt that taking sides was necessary....and the ones who turned their backs on me the instant they could. And especially the one who turned his back on me the instant I got married.

I am bitter about being shunned for a scholarship I planned much of my collegiate career for, because the professor in charge of the application process thought my DEGREE wasn't appropriate.

I'm bitter about the people in groups who shun the people who don't agree with them, then preach about how they are better people who are somehow more enlightened...they preach about others blindness, yet are oblivious to their own intolerance.

And I'm bitter about other relatively minor things.

Yet I'm NOT bitter about so much I could be. This, by the way, is why my bitterness waspointed out. Why can I let some things go and not others? I have NO IDEA.

But, yes. I am a bitter person. It's not something I am necessarily proud of, but there it is.

Last night, HHBG and I went out to dinner for my 31st birthday. I had gotten my nails done for this, and for some reason I decided to get a plain old french manicure. It's nice, but BORING. I never realised how much joy having pretty-yet-kind-of-crazy nails gives me.

I am going to get a color change next week, I think. Maybe yellow with purple pulled-stripes.